Ricky Ponting has insisted that Brad Haddin knows exactly where he stands regarding his future in the Australian team.

Sidelined from the two Twenty20 Internationals against India and the ongoing ODI tri-series, wicketkeeper-batsman Haddin feared he had been dropped rather than rested.

Short of runs and responsible for a couple of dropped catches in Test cricket of late, Haddin has faced consistent criticism despite the selectors insisting he is firmly in their plans for the 2013 Ashes series.

Wade, 10 years Haddin's junior, has done more than enough with the bat and behind the stumps to merit selection ahead of the senior man in limited-overs competition at least.

Former skipper Ponting assured all and sundry that the selectors have been very clear in their communication to Haddin.

"He actually has been given that clarity, face to face. That's my understanding of it all," said Ponting. "He has been told and his position on it has been rock solid all the way through.

"He hasn't changed anything. What he had to say when he was left out of the first game is exactly what he's saying now.

"Why the word 'rested' was used, I can't answer that. I've got no idea why the communication has been the way it has been to the media but I know Brad's stance hasn't changed from day dot.

"Whatever communication I've had with selectors since this new panel's been in place, to me directly, has been very good. I've been out of the loop in the last few months and not being the captain, I'm not exactly sure of the way the communication's been between players on the outside or players coming in or out."

With Clarke sidelined for at least one match by a hamstring ailment, the hosts handed former skipper Ricky Ponting the reins for Friday's fixture, leaving David Warner to suffice with his role as vice-captain.

Quick to promote Cameron White to the T20I captaincy in the past, and more recently George Bailey, the brains trust preferred the experienced Ponting to the maturing Warner this time around. The move attracted its fair share of criticism, with erstwhile captain Steve Waugh in particular questioning the selectors' thinking.

"I did have a think about it - the stand-in captaincy - and I had a good chat to national selector John Inverarity about that and what some of my concerns were around that," added Ponting. "But I decided to do what they wanted me to do and what I felt was probably right for the team right at the moment.

"We've got a few of our experienced guys out on the sidelines at the moment, and I know David had been named vice-captain at the start of the series and the selectors made it very clear why they haven't given him the captaincy for this game. I'm excited about leading the team again but hopefully it's only for a very short period of time.

"My concerns were all the things that have already been spoken about in the media in the past couple of days. The fact there was a vice-captain named and it looked like I was coming over the top of him and maybe not giving a younger guy an opportunity to captain Australia. They were the things I spoke to John about, but the fact they'd actually asked me, they'd put a lot of time and thought and energy into making me come back into this role, so I agreed to do it and felt and still feel right now that it's probably the best decision for the team."

Meanwhile, Brett Lee and Warner have overcome respective toe and elbow injuries and are expected to play in the crucial clash at the Sydney Cricket Ground, where the hosts will look to again trump a Sri Lankan opposition smarting in the wake of three consecutive defeats in the series thus far.